Fan Fiction / Dead Or Alive Fan Fiction ❯ Dead or Alive Gaiden: Rise of the Fiends ❯ Prologue: The Fiendish Imprisonment ( Prologue )

Ryu Hayabusa stood far above his prey -his target. But that didn't mean that he was undetected. Far from it actually; his doppelganger was very well aware of the fact that he was there. Ryu's doppelganger stared at him with blank, lifeless eyes. Its face was a featureless mask, its skin the color of cooled lava. Ryu's stare burned into it for a moment more before the doppelganger turned and dashed away.

 

Ryu's eyes narrowed and he dropped the full fifty feet from his perch to give chase. He had been chasing this apparition for quite some time; ever since he had learned that more of his doppelgangers still survived within the crippled Vigoor Empire. He had been at it for a few weeks now: searching and biding his time and resources until he had some solid evidence. Now he had finally found it and he wasn't about to let this Fiend slip through his grasp.

 

Ryu chased after the doppelganger and was soon only a few meters from it. He had learned during his initial travels in the Vigoor that while the doppelgangers could mimic and copy one's abilities and powers, they would never have the true thing. Even so, Ryu couldn't have his abilities being used to harm the unsuspecting innocent of the Vigoor Empire.

 

Ryu leapt forward and landed on the nearest wall then sprung off it and whistled past his doppelganger. He whirled around in midair and slashed out with the Dragon Sword only for it to strike his doppelganger's blade. Ryu landed gracefully, completing his spin and held himself ready. The doppelganger however, was thrown backwards a few feet; his sword quivered from the force of Ryu's strike. Ryu glared hatefully at this sword; a pitiful attempt to recreate his own Dragon Sword, and sprang forward once again. His doppelganger met him halfway and they locked blades. But Ryu was quick to overpower his opponent and break his guard. He drove his left knee into the doppelganger's stomach, doubling it over before hammering his left elbow into the back of its head.

 

The doppelganger stumbled forward and turned, sloppily putting up its guard. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Ryu registered that this Fiend was making him look bad. If this was the extent of its abilities…

 

Ryu dashed forward, parrying the doppelganger's blade and delivering a quick snap-kick to the Fiend's throat. It was knocked back, but was quick to correct itself in midair and land in a crouch. Ryu growled quietly in frustration and jumped forward. He found himself sword-locked once again, but this time the doppelganger held its ground. Try as he might, Ryu was unable to move this monster, and it was unable to move him.

 

Ryu flipped back and put some space between himself and his enemy before charging once more. His doppelganger met his charge and the two took their duel to a new level. They fought throughout the city of Tairon; over rooftops and through the streets. They clashed in alleyways and their swords sang out through the otherwise-quiet night.

 

As the doppelganger charged towards Ryu, the Dragon Ninja saw his opening. He sprang back and landed on the nearest wall as he unleashed a torrent of more than one dozen shuriken stars at his enraged opponent. This did little to slow the doppelganger's charge, however, and Ryu leapt to the side as the doppelganger landed against the wall he had been a mere instant before. But by then it was already too late; an explosion ripped away that portion of the wall and sent Ryu's doppelganger back to the streets below in a heap of flames. The shuriken stars had only served as a distraction. Ryu's true goal was accomplished when he embedded the incendiary shuriken knife in the wall. The doppelganger's collision with it had set off the fuse and caused the explosion.

 

Ryu landed quietly on the streets and cautiously observed the doppelganger's burning form. He couldn't help but be surprised when it began to rise back to its feet and retrieve its blade before returning to its stance.

 

Perhaps he had given this Fiend too little credit…

 

Nevertheless, Ryu sprung forward once again. He forced the doppelganger's blade away with his metal gauntlet and hurled it into a nearby alleyway with one of his deadly “Guillotine Throws” in which he used his jumping momentum to flip his opponent over his head and throw him through the air. Even still, Ryu's doppelganger refused to stay down.

 

Ryu soon found himself growing frustrated with this apparition. Charging forward, the young Dragon Ninja landed on the nearest of the three walls surrounding his doppelganger and exploded off it with a vicious “Flying Swallow”. But he didn't stop there. As soon as he landed, he repeated this move, jumping to the nearest wall and using it to launch his attack. Four more times this attack was repeated before the doppelganger fell to its knees once more.

 

But it still lived…

 

Ryu made a quick upwards slash with the Dragon Sword, sending his Fiend doppelganger into the air. He jumped up to meet it and delivered four diagonal slashes across its chest then spun in midair and cut downward. The doppelganger crashed to the ground -a bloody mess- as Ryu stood over it. This time it was unable to rise. It could barely lift its head to “glare” at Ryu through empty eyes, and with Ryu's sword at its throat, it dared not lift its head any further. Ryu prepared for the killing stroke and drew his sword back. But he was suddenly blindsided and sent crashing into the nearest wall. Ryu quickly recovered and put up his guard, his sword raised.

 

Before him stood what appeared to be a second doppelganger. This one was different from the ones Ryu had encountered before. This one was dressed all in black -in an outfit that greatly resembled his own, Ryu noted. The only difference was the fact that no skin was seen as the black suit covered the doppelganger completely. The gauntlets, too, were different. Instead of the smooth black metal Ryu wore, this Fiend's gauntlets were a deep red in color and had hard, knobby protrusions. The Fiend's face was also completely covered and the shining headgear that Ryu was known to wear had been replaced by a wickedly shaped, black-plated mockery.

 

The second doppelganger's red scarf flapped in the wind and the first doppelganger slowly rose to its feet once again before retrieving its discarded weapon. The second doppelganger quietly and easily drew his sword from its scabbard. The devilish weapon seemed to glow a faint red and Ryu drew in a sharp breath.

 

The Kitetsu, he thought for an instant. He recognized the blade of his old enemy: the Greater Fiend Doku. But he quickly stamped the thought away. It was impossible for this Fiend to posses Doku's life-draining blade; Ryu had hidden the blade -sealed it- in a place where only he himself could reach it. No, like the first, this second doppelganger's weapon was just like the doppelganger itself; a copy.

 

Ryu glared at the two Fiends as they began to advance towards him. Ryu readied the Dragon Sword and slowly reached to his back and grasped the handle there. With a hum to signal its activation, the Plasma Saber whirled to life. Its blue-green energy blade glowed fiercely. The two doppelgangers seemed to pause at this change of events and Ryu stared them down for a moment before exploding forward, both swords in hand. He collided with them and sparks lit up the darkness when their blades met. It was a deadly dance and Ryu was forced to adapt his fighting style to combat the two apparitions. Had both been at full strength, Ryu would have been at a great disadvantage. But as it was, the first doppelganger was considerably weakened and Ryu noticed just how much significantly slower it moved. Even still, that still left the second -apparently more powerful- doppelganger to contend with. It was still fresh and Ryu was slightly worn out from his efforts to bring his first doppelganger down. Before long, Ryu found himself being pushed back under the combined assault of the two Fiends.

 

The four swords locked together once more, and Ryu was thrown back against a wall. He paused, breathing hard as he prepared himself for the doppelgangers' next wave. He was already injured; deep gashes ran across his chest, legs, and arms and blood slowly seeped from the wounds and dripped to the ground, blotting it red. Ryu searched desperately for something he could use; he needed to end the fight quickly and he couldn't afford for it to go on much longer. He did a quick mental check of his inventory and a plan soon formed.

 

Flipping backwards, Ryu sheathed both swords, landed on the wall behind him, and began to backpedal up it. The two Fiend doppelgangers were quick to follow. In mid-run, Ryu reached into one of his many hidden pockets and grasped the three spheres held within. Ryu hurled the spheres at the second doppelganger as it neared him and the three spheres exploded; smothering the Fiend in smoke. The first doppelganger, clearly distracted by this turn of events was caught unawares. Ryu drew the Dragon Sword and made a clean cut across the Fiend's chest before latching onto it and driving it spinning into the ground, finally slaying it.

 

From the corner of his eye, Ryu could see the second doppelganger quickly descending towards him, its blade glowing red. The Dragon Ninja steadied himself and drew the essence from his defeated opponent into the Dragon Sword. When the doppelganger moved into range, Ryu exploded forward with unmatched speed. His blade flew in a horizontal arc and he cleanly decapitated his dark counterpart. Ryu fumbled in his pockets as the doppelganger's body boiled away to nothing and he grasped the neck of a small bottle of blue liquid. He quickly downed the fluid and breathed a sigh of relief as the magic substance began to heal his wounds.

 

A slight flittering across his senses caused Ryu to turn his head upwards towards the presence he had felt. He caught sight of a figure clad in a black cloak standing atop one of the rooftops. As soon as Ryu had laid eyes upon the figure, the figure turned and dashed away. With a quiet growl of frustration, Ryu leapt up to the roof and took off after it. He was surprised to find that this being was able to keep an equal pace with him and Ryu found himself gaining no ground on this new foe.

 

The two raced past Muramasa's shop, and Ryu could barely hear the elderly sword-smith's words of warning. He paid them no heed. He continued to follow this strange Fiend over the Great Bridge and up the steps to the Imperial Palace. Somewhere in his subconscious, Ryu was impressed with the speed at which the palace had been rebuilt. When he had seen it last it had been in shambles and was left barely standing.

 

The strange Fiend made a sharp turn and raced over the twisted bridge that led to the core of the Imperial Palace. It led Ryu up the winding stairs and chambers that had once housed the small busts of the five ancient Deities. At the top of the core, the black-clad Fiend stopped and turned to Ryu. It drew a weapon from beneath its cloak; a dark-bladed abomination. It was wickedly curved and pointed.

 

The Dark Dragon…

 

Ryu quickly dismissed the idea; this blade didn't give off the same horrid aura of evil that was expected of the Dark Dragon. The feeling of death, the swirling distortion and destruction that flowed from the Dark Dragon Blade, was absent. No, this was another one of these doppelgangers' copies. But that didn't mean it wasn't dangerous. No, this blade and its wielder warranted just as much caution as any other challenge.

 

As Ryu and his doppelganger clashed atop the palace core, Ryu was unaware of the scenery beginning to shift around them. He was so caught up in the fury of the duel, that he didn't even register the fact that he and his third doppelganger were no longer within the Imperial Palace.

 

Ryu thrust his blade forward as his doppelganger moved to block it with the broad side of the fake Dark Dragon Blade. But Ryu's thrust pierced through the weapon and stabbed into the doppelganger's chest. The Fiend boiled and bubbled away whilst still impaled on Ryu's blade and it was only then that Ryu noticed the change in scenery. He was in the middle of a mountain range covered in snow. Ryu's ninja training had forced him to endure extreme temperatures before, but nothing could have prepared him for this. A blizzard roared around him. Frozen winds lashed across his bare arms the cold cut straight to the bone. The snow rose halfway up to his kneecaps and Ryu absently wondered how he had missed this fact while he was fighting the doppelganger. Ryu began to trudge through the blizzard as he tried furiously to keep himself warm. He considered using one of his Ninpo techniques but thought it better to save that for a truly desperate situation.

 

 

Ryu didn't know how long he had been walking through the whiteout. Within the endless blizzard, Ryu could hardly see past his nose and he had long since lost all feeling in his body. A few times now he had been forced to summon his fiery Ninpo to warm himself and keep from frostbite. But the flames never lasted long and Ryu reckoned that he only had enough energy for one last usage of Ninpo magic.

 

As he dragged himself through the frozen wasteland, Ryu started to see shapes and structures shadowed against the side of the mountains. Voices soon began to accompany these structures, and Ryu conceded to the fact that he was becoming delusional. However it was when the voices started turning into shouts and cries of pain that Ryu snapped himself awake. Fueled by adrenaline and instinct, Ryu dashed forward; his feet no longer encumbered by the thick snow. In a single leap, he cleared a strange rocky outcropping and landed in what appeared to be a closed in courtyard.

 

Within the courtyard, humans fought a losing battle against Fiends; brownish-yellow imp-like creatures with a single talon on each arm. Ryu was stunned for a moment -barely moving- until a cry shook him from his stupor. He hurled himself forward, the Dragon Sword whipped in an arc, it clove through one of the Fiends and the Fiend dropped dead to the ground. This seemed to alert the other Fiends to his presence and they all stepped away from the remaining humans and slowly stalked towards Ryu. The Dragon Ninja counted half-a-dozen Fiends and his brow knitted in concentration. Normally it wouldn't be even worth his time to defeat this small a number of such low level Fiends, but in his present condition Ryu doubted that he could even take on half the Fiends present before he collapsed from exhaustion.

 

Ryu drew on his last and only strategy. He took a deep breath to steady himself and then turned his focus inward. It had become a second nature for him -the manipulation of his bioelectrical current- and it took him only an instant to do so. The energy forced him up into the air and Ryu arched his back in a bestial roar. Lighting exploded from his body and sought out the six Fiends on instinct. The instant it struck them, the Fiends were vaporized. They barely even had time to shriek out their last cry of death.

 

Ryu dropped to the ground and collapsed to his knees. The Dragon Sword rolled from his grasp and he felt himself falling forward. Darkness began to creep into his vision and his breathing became slow and labored. Ryu barely noted the shouts of concern directed his way as he fell forward and the darkness claimed him.

 

 

Ryu awoke some time later; feverish and sweating bullets. He struggled to rise from where he lay, but his arms gave out before he could even raise his head. He managed this defeat in stride and took in his surroundings. He was wrapped in a thick blanket atop a decrepit-looking little mattress. A platter of what appeared to be food lay beside him. The room was stark; wooden floors and walls with a single glass window. Now more focused, Ryu steeled himself and rolled out of the bed. He found that he was no longer wearing his leather combat armor and now sported a ragged pair of sweat pants. Ryu wrapped the blanket around his bare torso and slowly opened the door. He stepped out and he cautiously made his way down the hallway. He was still feverish and dizzy; his head was pounding and his vision focused in and out, making his headache all the worse.

 

The hallway led to what appeared to be a large dinning room. Tables and chairs were set up throughout the room and the left wall supported a large glass window that looked out over the barren white landscape.

 

“`Name's Benjamin. You're moving around pretty well for a guy who just spent the last four nights at death's door,” a deep voice laughed as Ryu stepped into the dinning hall. Ryu spun around too quickly, however, and swayed on his feet before nearly falling to the floor. “Careful,” the large man warned. “You won't be one hundred percent for a little while. I'm actually surprised that you're even alive -never mind moving around- after your ordeal.”

 

Ryu regarded the man in silence. He was a grizzly of a man, standing a full head taller than Ryu himself. He had a thick brown beard and long shaggy-brown hair. The man was large; not unlike the “mountain men” and lumberjacks of the Americas, Ryu noted. He was dressed much the same as Ryu, except this man wore a thick wool sweater as well.

 

“Ryu Hayabusa,” Ryu introduced himself quickly. “What is this place?” Ryu questioned; business always comes first. “It isn't the mortal world and it is not the Fiend Realm either. Yet there are both Fiends and humans here. Where are we?”

 

“We're in a prison,” the man answered easily. “This is where those who oppose the rule of the Holy Vigoor Emperor are sent for punishment. It's a barren wasteland of endless snow and blizzard. There are a few more outposts like this set up throughout this hellhole and each of them holds about two dozen `inmates'.”

 

“And what of those Fiends?” Ryu asked. “Are they your guards?”

 

Benjamin shook his head with a sigh. “No,” he answered. “The Vigoor Emperor figured that it would be impossible for us to escape from this realm so he just threw us in here and left us to our own devices. There are food and supplies stockpiled here that are supposed to last us the rest of our lives.”

 

“It's a lifetime imprisonment?” Ryu gasped.

 

“What do you expect?” Benjamin retorted. “All of us here know about the Emperor's secrets; his Fiendish heritage. Do you think he would let us leave?”

 

Ryu nodded his understanding. “But why are the Fiends here, then?”

 

Benjamin shrugged. “We don't really know,” he answered honestly. “Some people believe that this realm is a sort of bridge between the Fiend Realm and the mortal world used for transporting large numbers of Fiends. But…”

 

“'But' what?” Ryu urged.

 

“I don't think that's the case,” Benjamin muttered darkly. “If you ask me. The Fiends are in here for the same reason we are; they rebelled against the Holy Vigoor Emperor.”

 

“I didn't think that was possible,” Ryu said cautiously. “As far as I was aware, the Fiends were totally loyal to the Emperor.”

 

“Doesn't seem to be the case then, does it?” Benjamin asked rhetorically. “The Fiends were probably thrown here for the same reason we were. And now that they're in here they hunt us for sport. Because they have nothing better to do.”

 

“And there's no way out of here?” Ryu asked.

 

Benjamin looked Ryu over for a moment, studying him; it seemed he was checking to see if Ryu was worthy of his answer. He smirked before answering. “Well,” he began. “Now that you mention it, there are a few of us that have been working to decode the hieroglyphics from some of the ancient ruins not too far off. From what we've been able to determine, there is a gateway that allows for passage out of this realm. The gateway calls for the activation of seven statues; six of which rest on mountaintops while the last is located at the bottom of a deep ravine.”

 

“You'll probably need tablets to activate the statues,” Ryu stated absentmindedly.

 

Benjamin smirked. “You catch on fast,” he said. “Luckily we already have two of the seven tablets necessary, but the other five are scattered all over this hellhole in god-knows how many pieces.”

 

“Then we should probably get to work,” Ryu declared. Benjamin stared at him for a moment before breaking out into a wide smile and clapping him on the back.

 

“That's what I like to hear,” the large man laughed. Ryu smiled in return. “As soon as you're back to one hundred percent you can join us.” Benjamin rose from his seat and turned to leave but stopped. “You know, Ryu, you coming here almost seems like fate. All these Fiends -as horrifying and terrible as they are- they're all afraid of you. This is the break we've been waiting for.”

 

The next day, Ryu accompanied Benjamin and the dozen other men out into the harsh whiteness…

 

Ryu and his band of comrades peered down into the deep canyon that housed the final of the serpent statues. Ryu and Benjamin stood at the head of the group alongside another man -Davis Jorgenson- who held the pieces of the final stone tablet. The chasm ran deep and a thick fog made actually seeing the bottom of the ravine nearly impossible.

 

“Three years, and it comes down to this moment,” Benjamin whispered. Ryu nodded silently. It had indeed been three years since he had become trapped in this snow-white hell, and those three years had been miserable; many lives had been lost.

 

“I just wanna get the hell outta' here,” Jorgenson muttered darkly as he absently traced over the engraved words on the tablet. The rest of the group could only grumble in agreement. Davis was a skinny man with almost mouse-like features. He was a stark contrast to the much larger Benjamin.

 

Then came the roars and inhuman cries. They rose out from the chasm; the cries of the damned. Of demons and monsters. Ryu's gaze bored into the abyss as he tried to make out the shapes, but the fog was too thick, the Fiends too well hidden. Something pricked at the back of the ninja's senses and he slowly turned his head to look behind him and his eyes narrowed.

 

The colossal Vigoorian Berserker strode forward, unencumbered by the blizzard. It was a terrifying sight to behold. It was huge, much taller and heavier than Ryu himself would ever be. Its hands and feet were equipped with talon-like claws and its horns adorned its head. The Berserker carried itself upright like a human and was almost knight-like in its appearance; from its skeletal armor to the massive two-handed sword it wielded with deadly efficiency. The massive Fiend led a troop of Gallas; red, dragon-like Fiends with powerful jaws and teeth, and large horns.

 

“Start repelling down to the statue,” Ryu ordered the others as he drew the Dragon Sword from its scabbard on his back. He quickly shed heavy layer of clothing he had worn to brave the blizzard and was left in his leather combat armor once again. Ryu knew he would need every measure of speed at his disposal.

 

“You heard the man,” Benjamin shouted out over the roaring winds. He and the other twenty remaining men began to drop over the lip of the ravine and descend into the thick fog. “Good luck,” Benjamin shouted to Ryu before he disappeared over the edge. Ryu muttered his thanks and readied himself.

 

Ryu surged forward, his feet dancing across the surface of the snow. He leapt high into the air and over the head of the Berserker. As he cleared the Fiend, his foot snapped back and cracked the monster across the back of its skull. The Berserker stumbled forward and Ryu made a mad dash towards the nearest of the Gallas. He avoided the beast's charge by stepping atop its head and spinning through the air; cutting through the Fiend's spinal column in the process. The beast dropped to the ground: unmoving. But Ryu stabbed it through the heart just for good measure. Out of the corner of his eye, Ryu saw a dark shape moving towards him at an incredible speed. Were it not for his training, he would have been cleaved in half by the Vigoorian Berserker's massive sword.

 

`Gotta keep moving,' Ryu thought to himself. `Don't let yourself get distracted by the little ones. Keep your attention on the big guy. Make him the center of battle and let the others trip all over each other trying to get to you.'

 

Ryu corkscrewed to the right as the Berserker's blade crashed to the point he had been an instant before. The Berserker then swept his blade towards Ryu, but he quickly corkscrewed back to the left and then exploded forward and landed a vicious corkscrew-dropkick to the Fiend's chest. The giant stumbled back before righting itself and swing its massive sword with reckless abandon. The Fiend was so caught up in taking Ryu down, that it didn't even notice when its blade began to systematically cut through the remaining five Gallas as Ryu nimbly danced around it. Ryu sprang forward as the weight of the Berserker's blade caused the Fiend to tip off-balance and Ryu slashed his sword across the Fiend's face, ripping through its eyes and blinding it. The Berserker roared in agony and dropped its sword to grasp its face in pain. Ryu wasted no more time. He quickly gathered the essence given off by the deaths of the Gallas and pooled it within his sword. Then he shot forward. His blade cut deep lines into the Berserker's flesh.

 

Ryu flipped back and watched as the Berserker roared its fury. Ryu was at a loss for a moment, but then he saw the Berserker's discarded great sword lying only a few meters away. He made a dash for it while at the same time hurling the Dragon Sword like a spear. It stabbed through the Berserker's skull, eliciting a roar of pain. Ryu's hand grasped the thick handle of the Berserker's sword and swung it hard. The deadly edge of the sword caught the Fiend just beneath its left arm and Ryu pushed the blade further, driving it completely through the Berserker. The Fiend finally dropped dead to the ground and Ryu wrenched the Dragon Sword from its corpse before the corpse boiled away.

 

Shouts of alarm and screams of pain arose from behind him and Ryu spun around. He ran forward and dove into the ravine. As he flew through the fog, Ryu began to make out the shapes at the bottom. He landed silently on the snowy and foggy ground and whipped out the Dragon Sword. He caught sight of his remaining comrades; only five were left: Benjamin, Jorgenson, and three others. The three massive Fiends that now slowly circled towards remaining five had ripped the others to shreds. They were huge white monstrosities reminiscent of the Fiend Yotunfrau. They were eyeless with a massive set of jaws. They had two long and muscular arms that ended in three thick claws. But the strangest aspect of these Fiends was their legless-ness. Their bodies simply ended in a stump.

 

Thin wooden spears were all that stood between these Fiends and their victims. Well that…and Ryu.

 

One of the beasts grabbed Benjamin in its massive claws and Ryu forced himself to move. He hurled himself forward with a roar ripping its way from his throat. The Dragon Sword bit deep into the Fiend, completely severing the arm that held Benjamin. The monster recoiled in pain before Ryu descended upon it once again. He was little more than instinct and blade; cutting the snowy Fiend to ribbons. A cry drew his attention back to the others. One of the remaining Fiends had attacked with its elemental abilities; drawing up massive shards of ice from the ground. Jorgenson's legs had been completely sheared off, and the other three were impaled on the great shards.

 

Ryu saw Benjamin bolt forward and grab the tablet from Jorgenson's outstretched hand. The large man jumped away just as one of the Fiends stabbed its claws downward; skewering Jorgenson through the chest. Benjamin placed the tablet on its designated indentation in the statue and the statue began to spin in place. Ryu leaped forward and slashed his blade through the remaining two Fiends. He was a hurricane of sword blades and daggers. He moved with a strength forged from three years in a hellish wasteland and with a determination fueled by desperation. The two Fiends were reduced to nothing more than shreds of flesh within moments. Ryu turned back to Benjamin, urging him forward. But he found that Benjamin wasn't paying attention to him any more. His gaze was turned skyward. His eyes widened and he flipped backwards as a large red form crashed into the ground.

 

The Gallas jumped forward. It latched its jaws around Benjamin and shook its head furiously, ripping flesh and skin from bones. Benjamin's screams echoed off the walls of the ravine, and then everything was quiet. The Fiend turned back towards Ryu. Now that he looked more carefully, Ryu noticed that it was one of the six that he had encountered at the lip of the ravine. It was one of the ones he thought had been killed; the deep gashes left by the Berserker's blade were evidence enough of that.

 

At this point all Ryu saw was red. The Gallas prepared itself and charged towards Ryu, but the fires had already begun to circle the Dragon Ninja. The red Fiend recoiled in pain and prepared for a second charge, but it was promptly incinerated by a massive fireball. Only its legs remained, and soon they, too, boiled away.

 

Ryu stood in silence as the events of the past few minutes caught up with his consciousness. Dread, sorrow, and nausea fell upon him and Ryu stared at his hands in disgust. With all the power he possessed, he had been unable to protect even these few people: men not unlike himself who only desired their freedom. Slowly Ryu turned around and walked towards the statue. He reached into his pocket and pulled out one of his incendiary shuriken knives. He lit it and stabbed it into the surface of the stone tablet. He would prevent anything from following him back to the mortal world. Slowly and purposefully, Ryu placed a single hand on the stone tablet. He was enveloped by a brilliant white light, and soon found himself hurtling through a shining expanse of energy and space. The light faded and Ryu once again found himself in the ruins of the Hayabusa village, standing within a circle of light. The light flared up and quickly died down; the incendiary weapon having done its job: the two worlds were disconnected now.

 

Ryu quietly stepped from the plot of land and made his way through the ruins of the Hayabusa village. Since its destruction, Ryu had refused to rebuild it; its condition was a constant reminder of what he had lost. In the three years he had been away the village had decayed even further. Walls had crumbled and vines snaked in and out of buildings. But Ryu's feelings of loss were profound. He stepped into one of the few stable structures and sat himself in a dark corner.

 

He was in no mood to revel in his escape and victory.

 

And so the darkness and comfort of sleep claimed Ryu, but his dreams were filled with screams and nightmarish beings. It was a terrifying premonition of things still to come…